THUNDER BAY – Winning streaks don’t last forever.
But while captain Dillon Donnelly would have liked to have kept the Lakehead Thunderwolves six-game alive, he’s not about to let a 5-2 home-ice defeat at the hands of the always pesky York Lions get him down, especially after his side fired 51 shots at opposition goalie Mack Shields.
The shots and effort were there, but the T-Wolves just couldn’t capitalize on their chances, stymied by Shields at almost every turn.
And then there was Lions forward Reid Jackman, who fired a natural hat trick, including a couple of dribblers that squeezed past LU goalie Devin Green, adding an assist on York’s fourth goal for a four-point night.
“Obviously he’s a very good goalie and he made some very good saves for them,” Donnelly said. “I thought we played a solid game, maybe even one of the best games out of the six-game win streak that we had. We just couldn’t put the puck in the net.
“(Shields) played a very fine game, they scored on their chances, but we’ll be ready to go tomorrow.”
Lakehead coach Andrew Wilkins agreed the effort was there, but the execution wasn’t. That’s what cost them a shot at the game, he said.
“I thought there was a little mis-execution,” Wilkins said. “I think we had a ton of really good scoring opportunities that we didn’t bear down on. It’s a tough one.”
The two teams played a scoreless first, the Lions jumping on the board two minutes into the second when Jackman charged the net and shoveled it at Green, who appeared to have covered it up, only to have it slide through and over the goal line.
Seven minutes later he added his seventh of the season on a wrist shot from the slot and Jackman, the only fifth-year player on the York roster, completed his three-goal effort at the 14:42 mark, a hard shot deflecting off his stick and trickling into the net for a 3-0 Lions lead.
“We need his experience. It certainly hurt us last weekend not having him in the lineup,” said second-year York coach Russ Herrington.
“He’s been dynamite since the start of the year. He’s been dangerous with his speed and size and now it’s starting to go in for him, which is nice. I hope he can continue that for another 24 hours.”
Rookie Tomas Soustal finally cracked Shields in the final minute of the second, lifting a soft shot over the third-year goalie’s left shoulder, the goal coming minutes after the Wolves appeared to have broken the goose egg, only to have the referee wave it off.
Scot Feser, who had a pair of helpers playing alongside Jackman, found the back of the net himself five minutes into the third, Daniel Del Paggio scored his team-leading fifth of the season off a lights-out cross-crease pass from Scott Gall, but try as they might, it was the last time they’d light the lamp on the night.
Wilkins pulled Green with two minutes to play, to no avail.
It marked the 13th time in 14 outings the Lions have beaten the Thunderwolves. They’ll look to make it 14 in 15 on Saturday night.
Game time at the Gardens is 7 p.m.
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: None. Penalties: Schutt LAK (slashing) 2:05, Zottl YRK (hooking) 7:31.
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: 1. York, Jackman 6 (unassisted) 1:57. 2. York, Jackman 7 (Feser, Messenger) 8:58. 3. York, Jackman 8 (LaFrance, Feser) 14:42 pp. 4. Lakehead, Soustal 3 (Butler, Schutt) 19:11. Penalties: Nikandrov YRK (interference) 10:02, Donnelly LAK (slashing) 14:15, Forrest YRK (slashing) 16:40, Messenger YRK (cross checking) 19:37.
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring: 5. York, Feser 3 (Messenger, Jackman) 5:17. 6. Thunder Bay, Del Paggio 5 (Gall, Wolframe) 8:37. 7. York, Zottl 2 (unassisted) 18:46 en. Penalties: Harris YRK, Mowbray YRK, Wesley-Chisel LAK (roughing) Boman LAK (roughing, unsportsmanlike conduct) 5:53, Forrest YRK (cross checking) 16:00.
GAME DATA – SOG – York 7-13-5-25, Lakehead 17-19-15-51; Power plays (goals-chances) – York (1-3), Lakehead (0-5); Goaltenders – York: Mack Shields, Lakehead: Devin Green; A: 2,247.
